30-Car Entry Set for Analytic Systems USF2000 Grand Prix of TorontoThe Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda will reach the halfway point in its 14-race season this weekend, July 12-14, with the Analytic Systems USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto. A strong field of 30 drivers from around the world will do battle in a pair of races on the challenging 1.75-mile street circuit which runs around the famed Exhibition Place within easy reach of downtown Toronto, Ont., Canada.

In addition to the Honda Indy Toronto, which will comprise a pair of full-length races on Saturday and Sunday for the IZOD IndyCar Series, the action-packed weekend will include all three levels of the Mazda Road to Indy – USF2000, the Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires and Firestone Indy Lights – as well as the Pirelli World Challenge and Stadium Super Trucks.

MILLER: Pocono Does IndyCar ProudNot many promoters are willing to take a gamble on an oval-track race for Indy cars these days but the Igdalsky brothers gave it a shot at Pocono over the weekend and may have laid the foundation to have a future.

Sure, the massive grandstand wasn’t half full and the infield didn’t resemble the masses at a NASCAR race but considering Indy cars had been away for 24 years it was encouraging.

No official figures were released but counting grandstands, bleachers, suites and the campers an estimate of 30,000 seemed to be in the ballpark.

He added fans after the race "expressed their disappointment, almost immediately, via social media posts, phone calls and through e-mails." Igdalsky: "This week, we have meetings with state and local officials to find the exact reason for the breakdown and ensure these issues are resolved" (Pocono Raceway).

Toronto race on schedule despite floodingDespite the massive flooding in and around Toronto, and especially on the Lake Shore, the Honda Indy gets the green flag for this weekend’s annual event at Exhibition Place.

Although many wondered via Twitter and other social media whether the event would be affected, or even postponed, by the torrential rains, Honda Indy Toronto spokesperson Kathleen Stelmach says “we’re moving forward as planned.”

Putting Sato's brain-fade into perspectiveThe Pocono INDYCAR 400 may be deemed a resounding success. After 24 years, the return of the IZOD IndyCar Series to Pocono Raceway was enjoyed as much by the drivers as it was by the fans, who came out to see the Indy cars racing on The Tricky Tri-Oval at 220 mph.

Staring seventh in the 24-car field, Takuma Sato drove the ABC Supply Honda into the top five by lap six of the 160-lap event. He ran there until the first round of pit stops on lap 31 wherein the crew turned in a quick stop which included a change to the setting on the rear wing.

In the next stint Sato climbed to third behind leader Marco Andretti and Ryan Hunter-Reay and ran there for half the stint before slower traffic cost him a position. Sato pitted again on lap 61 but struck Ryan Hunter-Reay as the two of them came down pit lane.

The 2014 Corvette Stingray will deliver up to an EPA-estimated 17 miles per gallon in the city, and 29 mpg on the highway, making the new Stingray the most fuel efficient sports car on the market as no other car offers more than 455 horsepower and greater than 29 mpg highway.

“The Corvette Stingray establishes the benchmark for modern performance cars by using technologies to deliver more performance and more miles per gallon,” said Tadge Juechter, executive chief engineer for the Corvette. “We expect more and more performance cars will follow Corvette’s example.”

BMW Group reports highest sales ever in first six monthsBMW Group achieved its highest sales for the first six months of the year, with a total of 954,521 vehicles delivered worldwide, an increase of 6.0% over the same period last year (prev. yr. 900,566). Sales in June also reached an all-time high with 184,489 vehicles sold worldwide last month, an increase of 6.9% over the previous year (172,528).

Ian Robertson, Member of the Board of Management, Sales and Marketing BMW, said in Munich on Monday: “The BMW Group achieved its best ever sales figures in the first half of this year and last month, despite the prevailing headwinds in some European markets. We aim to continue our sales growth in the second half of the year with new models such as the BMW 5 Series, which is launched this month and the third generation of the highly successful BMW X5 which arrives later in the year. Additional new models such as the BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo and the BMW 4 Series Coupé will also provide for further impetus.”

Johnson Likes Talladega Superspeedway ChancesWhen Jimmie Johnson talks about his five championships and 64 career triumphs in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, he is generally soft spoken. His success, however, in the No. 48 Chevrolet sends a direct message to fellow competitors. For the Oct. 20 Camping World RV Sales 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, that memo was delivered this past Saturday night.

After his Daytona win in Saturday’s Coke Zero 400, drivers better beware and do their homework for the return trip to Talladega if they plan to slow down the driver who is vastly becoming one of the best at drafting. Did he make a statement to the other drivers during the post-race press conference? You be the judge.

German GP TV RatingGerman free-to-air TV channel RTL "recorded high ratings for its broadcast of the German F1 Grand Prix on Sunday afternoon," according to Manuel Weis of QUOTENMETER. The race, which started at 2pm, attracted 5.36 million viewers. The grand prix, which was won by Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel, obtained a 40.9% market share. In the target demographic 14-49, Vettel's first victory at its home race had a 34.9% share. The race highlights following the conclusion of the grand prix were watched by an average of 2.98 million viewers. In addition, German pay-TV Sky attracted 380,000 viewers to its broadcast of the German Grand Prix. The number translated into a market share of 2.9%. In the target demographic, Sky "obtained a great 3.8% share." Quotenmeter

Horner and Brawn: Safety Gear for everyone (2nd Update)UPDATE #2 Gary Anderson opined the lesson of the German Grand Prix "is that Formula 1 pit stops need to be slowed down." They "have got so fast -- the top teams are routinely changing four wheels in 2.5 seconds -- that it has gone too far." I would suggest "reducing the number of people allowed to work on the pit stop" to 10. At the moment, there are about 20. BBC [Editor's Note: Ten? Still too many. Should be five. One for each wheel plus a fifth to adjust wings, clean air intakes.]

07/08/13 McLaren Team Principal Martin Whitmarsh fears F1 "is becoming complacent." He said, "Those of us who were around 25 years ago without speed limits could smell the inherent danger. On this occasion the wheel came bouncing through the pit area and it was pretty scary. They are bloody heavy. At that speed you'd have known all about it." Telegraph

07/08/13 Christian Horner and Mercedes Team Principal Ross Brawn "believe F1 should consider introducing safety gear for everyone in the pit lane." Horner "feels more should be done to make sure everyone in the pit lane is safe." He said, "Mechanics have to wear safety gear and helmets. Maybe it's time we looked at some of the other people working in the pit lane having some as well. It's something that needs to be looked at. The camera guys are getting close to the action. They are getting some great pictures but it's still a dangerous environment." Brawn echoed Horner's comments, saying, "On the basis of what we have seen here, we should be thinking that all people in the pit lane are properly dressed, equipped and should have a helmet on." Planet F1

Ryan Hunter-Reay not sure whether thumb brokenIndyCar Series driver Ryan Hunter-Reay said he has not been able to get his sore right thumb X-rayed following contact during a pit stop Sunday at Pocono Raceway.

Takuma Sato’s car ran into the back of Hunter-Reay’s, knocking the reigning series champion into the inside pit wall.

“By the time I got done yelling at Sato (IndyCar’s medical staff had) packed up the X-ray machine,” Hunter-Reay said in a text to The Star.

Hunter-Reay originally injured the thumb during the race weekend at Barber Motorsports Park in April. indystar.com

Pippa Mann confirms Dale Coyne Racing drive in FontanaPippa Mann and Dale Coyne Racing have confirmed that the British driver will run for the team in IndyCar’s final Triple Crown event of the year, to be held in Fontana, California.

Mann drove for the Illinois-based team in both the previous Triple Crown events – the Indianapolis 500 and Pocono IndyCar 400 – and she will complete the Dale Coyne Racing line-up alongside fellow Brit Justin Wilson for the MAVTV 500 in October.

Conway back with Dale Coyne RacingMB Partners, who represents the talented British driver Mike Conway, announced today they have signed a deal with Dale Coyne Racing to put Conway in their second entry for both IndyCar double-header races, the Honda Indy Toronto (13-14 July) and the Grand Prix of Houston (5-6 October).

Conway, 29, will be driving the No. 18 Sonny’s BBQ car, which he last drove at the Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit back in June. Having not been in a car since Long Beach, Conway showed his street course talent by winning the first race and becoming the only driver to secure podium finishes in both races. Not only did he achieve this but also earned his first IndyCar career pole for the second race, which happened to be Dale Coyne Racing’s first also.

IndyCar team owner and former leading driver Michael Andretti summed his day at Pocono Raceway today in a word -- bummer.

Coming into the Pocono IndyCar 400 race, everything seemed set. The stars were aligned, if you will, for Nazareth native Michael Andretti's Autosport organization to shine in the first IndyCar race at Pocono since 1989.

All of Michael's drivers -- son Marco, Ryan Hunter-Reay and James Hinchcliffe -- easily won the front row on the starting grid. Marco, of Bushkill Township, dominated all the preliminaries, including winning the pole in record time. But the wheels fell off this baby fast. Hinchcliffe spun into the wall in the first turn of lap 1 and Hunter-Reay was hit by Takuma Sato on pit road.

NASCAR Daytona TV RatingThe NASCAR Sprint Cup Coke Zero 400 from Daytona International Speedway earned an overnight 3.5 U.S. rating and nearly 5.7 million viewers on TNT Saturday night, up 5% in the ratings and 4% in viewership from last year (3.3, 5.5M). Final TV Ratings for 2012 were a 3.8 with 6.184 million viewers.

Target Founder Douglas Dayton Dies At 88 (Update)UPDATE The Target Racing Program, which began with Target and Chip Ganassi Racing in 1990, reached the 100-win mark today in Pocono with Scott Dixon’s win at Pocono Raceway. The first win for the program came in 1994 with Michael Andretti’s Indy car victory at Surfers Paradise, Australia when the team was just a two-car open wheel program. Ninety nine wins later, the program’s umbrella includes involvement in not only in the IZOD IndyCar Series, but in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series. The partnership between Target and Chip Ganassi Racing is one of the longest consecutive team partnerships in motor racing history.

Chip Ganassi, Owner, Chip Ganassi Racing: “As one of the longest consecutive team partnerships in motor racing history, we’re thrilled to celebrate this 100th win with Target. We’re looking forward to the next 100 wins.”

90,000 for Coke Zero 400Attendance for last night's Sprint Cup Series Coke Zero 400 at DIS was "estimated at 90,000." The event "went off without a noticeable hitch." Daytona Beach NEWS-JOURNAL. The NEWS-JOURNAL's Steve Master asks of the race, "Where were all the people this weekend?" Master: "One explanation might be that the Fourth fell on a Thursday, and many had to return to work on Friday. ... Another might be NASCAR's attendance slump." Daytona Beach NEWS-JOURNAL

Jeff Gordon couldn't resist seeing Indy cars race at Pocono Raceway, which is why he made a stop at the track today on his way home from Daytona International Speedway, where NASCAR raced Saturday night. Gordon lives in New York City. "I can't even imagine coming down that long straightaway and bouncing into Turn 1," he said before today's Pocono 400.

"Two hundred and 20 miles per hour around this place, that's why I'm here. I can't fathom that kind of speed."

Marco Andretti's pole speed (221.273 mph) was more than 41 mph faster than Joey Logano's stock car track record set last year. Gordon couldn't remember the last IndyCar race he attended, but he figured it was before he reached the Cup Series in 1992. Gordon came to the track with his son, Leo, who will be 3 next month. Gordon said his wife, Ingrid, saw a television ad for the IndyCar race and encouraged him to witness it. So he worked out travel arrangements. Indianapolis Star

Sunday Morning Update from Pocono (Update)UPDATE We have about an hour 15 minutes until the green flag falls for the Pocono IndyCar 400 Fueled by Sunoco. It should be noted that after a pretty sticky morning nice breeze has picked up here t the track, and it is shaping up for a pleasant day.

Also, the crowd is looking as if it will be pretty good. We spoke to some track officials this morning, who said they were budgeted for 25,000 people, and expect to easily exceed that. Of course, considering how big the track is, it may not look like a huge crowd on television. However, every indication is the crowd will be better than anticipated, and the event will be a success.

Video: Webber's tire hits man in German GP pits (Update)UPDATE An FOM cameraman has been injured in a pit lane incident at the German Grand Prix after being struck by a loose wheel.

Briton Paul Allen was struck by a wheel that was not properly attached during Mark Webber's first pit stop at Red Bull. Webber was released in to the pit lane but the wheel immediately detached itself from his car and rolled through the Mercedes crew before striking the cameraman.

An FIA statement confirmed that Allen has been transferred to a hospital in Koblenz where he remains conscious.

Johnny and Betty Rutherford Celebrate 50th Wedding AnniversaryThree-time Indianapolis 500 winner Johnny Rutherford and wife Betty are celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary today. Rutherford, of course won 27 Indy car races, including the 1974 Pocono 500 during his storied career. This morning during IndyCar Ministry Mass, Rutherford thanked Betty for her unwavering love and support, over the past 50 years, noting he was looking forward to the next 50 years.

p AutoRacing1.com would like to congratulate Mr. and Mrs. Rutherford, and wish them well on this special day.

Jon Lancaster has claimed his second sprint race victory in a week with a strong, mature race this morning at the Nurburgring, leading all the way from the start to win ahead of countryman James Calado and Fabio Leimer.

The Hilmer driver lined up on the front row next to poleman Tom Dillmann, outdragged the Frenchman when the lights went out, and claimed a lead which would not be challenged into turn one, with Dillmann clearly holding up Calado, Leimer, Marcus Ericsson, Sam Bird, Felipe Nasr and Stefano Coletti.

Eight races, eight different victors! Melville McKee made a great start to the race, straight into the lead and held off immense pressure from Status Grand Prix’s Alexander Sims until the checkered flag in a nail-biting conclusion. Brit’ McKee and his team both celebrate their debut win in the category. Nick Yelloly (Carlin) was third.

Reverse pole-sitter Sims, stepping in at Status Grand Prix for a one-off round, lost several places at the start, with McKee sneaking into the lead. Carlos Sainz (MW Arden) made a great start, as did Yelloly, with four abreast going into Turn 1. ART Grand Prix’s Jack Harvey tried a move on the outside of the first turn but contact was made with Sainz, which dropped the Brit’ down to P10.

O'Connell and Baldwin Take Home Wins at Lime Rock ParkLakeville, CT - Johnny O'Connell, of Flowery Branch, GA, and Jack Baldwin of Marrietta, GA took home wins in GT and GTS respectively at the Cadillac Lime Rock Park Grand Prix on Saturday for Round 9 of the Pirelli World Challenge 2013 season.

The win was the third of the season for both O'Connell, in the No. 3 Cadillac Racing Cadillac CTS-V.R, and Baldwin, in the No. 73 Motul/StopTech/Foametix Porsche Cayman S. O'Connell's win also netted Cadillac Racing its first 1-2 finish of the season.

Wind Tunnel SundayTommy Kendall will co-host with Dave Despain in the Wind Tunnel studio this week.

Sprint CUP title contender, Matt Kenseth, will join us from his fan club event in Wisconsin. Kenseth won his 4th CUP race of the year last week in Kentucky and won Friday night’s Nationwide race in Daytona.

In addition, we’ll have coverage from IndyCar’s return to Pocono…their first race at the track in 24 years when Danny Sullivan took the checkered flag in 1989.

A future star for certain, the very talented Carlos Munoz dominated again

As if only eight cars on a 2.5-mile track isn't boring enough, polesitter Carlos Munoz grabbed the lead at the start and ran off and hid to win the Pocono 100 Indy Lights race on Saturday leading every lap.

Colombian Munoz captured his fifth Firestone Indy Lights career victory today, and third of the season, when he started the Pocono 100 from the pole position -- his fifth pole of the year. He led each of the 40 laps in today's 100-mile race and crossed the finish with a 16.225 second lead over the competition.

Munoz previously raced in the Formula 3 Euroseries from 2010-2011 and competed in the Formula Renault Eurocup from 2007-2009.

"My team, my engineers, my mechanics, everyone did an amazing job giving me this great car. I was flat out the whole way and it's really nice to be back in victory circle after our weekend in Iowa. I was really motivated to come here and race on this oval. Looking forward to continue our momentum in Toronto."

Afternoon Update from Pocono (Update)UPDATE There's mass confusion at Pocono Raceway. In particular, there is confusion amongst Izod IndyCar Series teams regarding the car setup here at The Tricky Triangle. That is of course, unless you are Marco Andretti. But more on that later.

Anyway, since the unique layout is proving to be quite a puzzle, and I don't lay claim to the solution, allow me to list some of the problems they seem to be having. And yes, I am somewhat befuddled myself.

1. While there are added layers to this, the main problems seems to be finding the balance between turns 1 and 3. Drivers who spoke with us often would say their car was good in 1 or 3 but not 1 and 3. The two distinct corners are proving to be quite well, "tricky."

Job done! Pole position and a lights to flag victory for Argentine driver Facu Regalia in Race 1 of Round 4 of the 2013 GP3 Series season. It was his maiden victory in the category and a special day for ART GP, with the team celebrating their 20th win in the Series. The emotion literally swept Regalia off his feet in parc ferme, with Marussia Manor Racing’s Tio Ellinas in second extending his Series lead and ART Grand Prix's Jack Harvey third.

Regalia made the perfect getaway with Ellinas holding station in second, whilst Harvey got the jump on Alex Fontana’s Jenzer Motorsport car, the Swiss driver losing several places. There were a few incidents at the start with Koiranen GP’s Kevin Korjus tagging the back of Fontana on lap one, which took the rear wing off the Jenzer Motorsport car. The Estonian driver was issued with a drive through penalty when in seventh position and later retired.

Munoz, the final qualifier, recorded a two-lap average speed of 188.861 mph on the 2.5-mile Pocono Raceway tri-oval. He'll share the front row with championship points leader Sage Karam (187.302 mph) for the 40-lap race at 4 p.m. (ET) with the IMS Radio Network and live Timing & Scoring on www.indycar.com and the INDYCAR 13 app.

Having led both sessions on Thursday, Marco Andretti was again fastest in Saturday morning practice at Pocono Raceway for the Pocono IndyCar 400 fueled by Sonoco with a speed of 221.883 MPH. Tony Kanaan, the only driver eligible for the Triple Crown, was second at 220.819 MPH. Charlie Kimball was third for Honda.

Ericsson wins GP2 race 1 in GermanyMarcus Ericsson’s run of bad luck this season has been blown apart by a dominant drive to victory this afternoon in the feature race at the Nurburgring, storming away from his rivals despite a safety car to win by almost 8 seconds from James Calado and Stefano Coletti.

The result was set up at the start when Ericsson got off the line better than poleman and teammate Stéphane Richelmi, who bogged down and gave Mitch Evans a clear run at the first turn: the New Zealander ran too deep and gave the spot back to Ericsson, with Richelmi, Felipe Nasr and Robin Frijns behind him.

Updates from PoconoAutoRacing1.com is live at Pocono this weekend and we will provide live updates via Twitter @AutoRacing1 both Saturday and Sunday. We will also provide our regular updates via the website, iPhone and iPad.

Busch Crew Chief says illegal roof laps offer no advantageA crew chief for one of the 31 cars cited Thursday by NASCAR for illegal roof laps said the modification has "no advantage" at Daytona International Speedway. "There are no gains being made on superspeedways," Dave Rogers, crew chief for #18-Kyle Busch, said Friday on The Morning Drive SiriusXM program. "The advantage is 3 ounces of weight you saved up high in your roof." Busch's #18 Toyota was one of 16 Sprint Cup cars that were delayed from starting practice until changing the spacers, which NASCAR said weren't compliant with the rulebook. Spokesman Kerry Tharp said the spacers support the hinge bar on the roof flaps, which deploy during a spin to help keep a car from going airborne. USA Today

Horner confirms candidates for Red BullRed Bull boss Christian Horner has reiterated that Toro Rosso duo Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne plus Lotus' Kimi Raikkonen are all candidates for the seat that will be made available when Mark Webber leaves Formula 1 at the end of the season.

When asked by the official Formula 1 website if Toro Rosso as a junior team would be undermined should Red Bull opt for another driver, Horner replied: "Red Bull Racing is a world championship-winning team and wants to put the best drivers in our cars.

At 73, Andretti has long been retired from racing, and one of open wheels all-time greats hasn’t turned a competitive lap since a spectacular crash for the 2003 Indianapolis 500.

Andretti, though, hasn’t completely put the idea of one final race out of his mind. He’s serious when he says he wants to team up with son, Michael, and grandson, Marco, for an endurance race like the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona or 24 Hours of Le Mans.

“I’d do it,” Mario Andretti said. “There’s no point in me coming back unless there’s a compelling a reason.”

TONY STEWART, NO. 14 BASS PRO SHOPS/DUCKS UNLIMITED CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway and discussed what it would take to win this weekend’s 400-mile race, his Mobil 1 ‘soda cookies’ commercial and other topics. Full Transcript:

TALK ABOUT COMING BACK TO DAYTONA; CERTAINLY A PLACE THAT HAS TO BE FOND IN YOUR MEMORY: “Yeah, definitely any place you win 19 times at you kind of look forward to going back to. It’s cool, I didn’t realize until I think three weeks ago or something when we were here for our winner’s circle appearance that we have the opportunity to tie David Pearson this weekend. That’s a pretty cool stat to be brought into. Obviously if we get lucky enough to get another one that would be something to be really proud of. Definitely excited about having that opportunity. Excited our buddy Johnny Morris is going to be here this weekend with a bunch of people from Ducks Unlimited and that is a really big deal for us this weekend. Excited to have them on the car and excited to have a good weekend. Last night was pretty neat being here in town and actually having an evening to go enjoy the fourth (of July). It was fun to remember why we all get the chance to be here.”

DeltaWing Qualifies 12th Overall at Lime RockLAKEVILLE, CT - On a hot and humid afternoon that tested the limits of both man and machine, the DeltaWing team handled everything the conditions threw at them, making steady improvements throughout the day to qualify third in the P1 class and 12th overall for tomorrow’s American Le Mans Northeast Grand Prix at Lime Rock Park.

A late session tire puncture prevented driver Andy Meyrick from carving even more precious ticks off his qualifying lap times, but when the day ended he and co-driver Katherine Legge were happy in the knowledge that the team and the car are heading in the right direction.

Regalia takes maiden GP3 pole in NurburgringHe’s done it! Facu Regalia is a happy man, after being so close to pole on several occasions this year, the Argentine driver promised to deliver a pole position and today he’s done just that. The ART Grand Prix driver will be joined on the front row with Marussia Manor Racing’s Tio Ellinas with just 0.054s separating the two. Jenzer Motorsport’s Alex Fontana will start in third on the second row.

A beautiful, warm morning greeted the GP3 paddock as the 27 drivers made their way onto the track ready for the 30 minute fight for pole. Bamboo Engineering’s Melville McKee was first out with his teammate Lewis Williamson first to lap in the 1m45s bracket ahead of Daniil Kvyat (MW Arden) and Carlin’s Nick Yelloly.

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